Robert Leonard Jr. used to drive a Bentley. He owned a Preston Hollow mansion on a private lake. He kept lavish apartments in New Orleans and Santa Monica, Calif.

Robert Leonard Jr. was the top executive at Forced Multiplier Solutions when the bus camera company entered a deal with Dallas County Schools.

(KXAS-TV (NBC5))

Now the Louisiana businessman, who had lucrative contracts to put security cameras on school buses, will spend years in federal prison for his role in a bribery scandal that enriched him as it bilked Dallas County taxpayers out of tens of millions of dollars.

On Wednesday, a federal judge sentenced Leonard to 84 months in prison. Leonard, 71, pleaded guilty last year to paying local officials more than $3.5 million to secure contracts for his company.

The judge also ordered Leonard and the former superintendent of Dallas County Schools — Leonard's biggest client — to pay $125 million in restitution. But the judge said the likelihood of all that money being repaid was "remote."

Leonard said he launched his business to keep children safe on school buses. The enterprise became a financial disaster that led to indictments of three public officials, plus Leonard and a business associate.

"You had a good idea but the execution and what happened afterward makes that good idea pale by comparison. This is a shameful episode in our community," U.S. District Judge Barbara Lynn said.

Leonard's company, Force Multiplier Solutions, contracted with school districts to put security cameras on buses. Among other things, the cameras were supposed to catch drivers who blew past the buses' flashing red lights and stop signs. School districts could keep part of the revenue generated by ticketing drivers.

In 2010, Leonard’s company signed a contract with Dallas County Schools, the agency that handled bus service for kids in Dallas ISD and other districts. The contract eventually earned Leonard and his company $70 million.

The deal required Dallas City Council approval to write tickets within city limits. Leonard also had real-estate ambitions that needed zoning help and political influence.

Cameras mounted on the sides of buses were intended to increase safety by discouraging drivers from passing stopped buses, but Dallas County Schools' dealings with Force Multiplier Solutions brought the bus-service provider to the brink of financial ruin and led to a bribery scandal involving DCS and Dallas city officials. Voters abolished the agency in 2017.

(2014 File Photo)

Dallas County Schools superintendent Rick D. Sorrells talks to media members in April 2014 after the agency installed BusGuard System cameras from Force Multiplier Solutions on its fleet. Sorrels pleaded guilty to wire fraud last year in the bribery scandal surrounding DCS' dealings with Force Multiplier and is awaiting sentencing.

(2014 File Photo)

Dallas County Schools introduced Force Multiplier Solutions' BusGuard System in April 2014 at its headquarters in Dallas. This bus was equipped with eight cameras on the outside and three inside, including the stop-arm cameras, and a thumbprint scanner.

(2014 File Photo)

Leonard bribed City Council member Dwaine Caraway to help him out, according to prosecutors. The businessman and his associates doled out tens of thousands in campaign contributions to other elected officials.

Dallas County Schools even bought thousands of extra cameras from Leonard's company and tried to sell them to other Texas school districts. But the promises of extra revenue never came true. The risky venture put Dallas County Schools on the verge of bankruptcy. In 2017 voters decided to abolish the agency, which had amassed more than $100 million in debt.

Caraway was sentenced to 56 months in prison for his role in the scheme — which was first uncovered in extensive reporting by NBC 5 Investigates. Larry Duncan, the former Dallas County Schools board president, was sentenced in April to six months of home confinement and three years of probation.

Rick Sorrells, the former Dallas County Schools superintendent, pleaded guilty to wire fraud last year and awaits sentencing.

Leonard's business associate Slater Swartwood has also pleaded guilty in the case.

In court, Leonard's lawyer described how his client overcame a rough childhood to become a successful businessman. Leonard's father was a police officer who turned to crime and died in prison; he grew up in subsidized housing.

Leonard's son died in a car accident at age 21. Through that tragedy, Leonard became friends with the local sheriff, who talked about abuse and other dangers that kids faced while riding school buses.

"He wanted to do something with his life's work to make other people's lives better," said Leonard's lawyer, Chris Lewis.

Until FBI agents got involved, Lewis said, Leonard didn't see his payments to Caraway, Duncan or Sorrells as bribes.

"They had a financial need, and he provided it," Lewis said.

But prosecutors described an elaborate scheme in which Leonard funneled bribes to public officials through shell companies, consulting agreements, checks and loans.

And Lynn said the scheme hurt taxpayers, the community and employees of Dallas County Schools.

"The problem is that people who did not make these poor choices pay the price," she said.

Dressed in a gray suit and white shirt, Leonard sat in court with his ex-wife and daughter, who both spoke on his behalf. He suffers from poor hearing and health problems. He often struggled to hear the judge. He walked slowly, sometimes leaning on a chair or table for support.

Leonard apologized to the court, the city of Dallas and Dallas County.

"Instead of helping to save and helping the community, saving lives and saving families, I stand here as a criminal," he said. "I accept full responsibility for my actions."

Leonard is expected to begin serving his sentence in July.

U.S. Attorney Erin Nealy Cox said that by peddling bribes and kickbacks, Leonard undermined Dallas' trust in its public officials. Her office will relentlessly pursue such behavior, Cox said, "from bribe recipients to bribe facilitators to bribe payers."